Materials which can provide leathery and castoreum aromas, particularly those materials which are relatively inexpensive, are highly sought after in the art of perfumery. Many of the natural materials which provide such fragrance profiles and contribute desired nuances to perfumery compositions and perfumed article substances are high in cost, vary in quality from one batch to another and/or are generally subject to the usual variations of natural products.
There is, accordingly, a continuing effort to find synthetic materials which will replace the essential fragrance notes provided by the natural essences or compositions thereof. Unfortunately, many of these synthetic materials either have the desired nuances only to a relatively small degree or else contribute undesirable or unwanted odor to the composition. The search for materials which can provide a more refined leathery and castoreum aroma profile has been difficult and relatively costly in the areas of both natural products and synthetic products.
The compound having the structure: ##STR2## is a known compound disclosed at Chemical Abstracts Volume 99, Monograph 139339e (abstract of Japanese Kokai Tokkyo Koho No. 58/94042; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 72, 1352-6 (1950); and Acta Chem. Scand. 5, 485-6 (1951).
Nothing in the prior art, however, infers or states that the diethyl ester of 2-isopropyl-3-oxosuccinic acid of our invention can be used in augmenting or enhancing leathery aromas or imparting leathery aromas.